Scrooge Had It Right The First Time
by Shinku
Summary: When Christmas takes a nose dive, Goblin Kings make for good listeners.


**Scrooge Had It Right The First Time**

(Or Maybe He Finally Got It Right in the End)

_By Shinku_

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Summary: When Christmas takes a nose dive, Goblin Kings make for good listeners.

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Sarah stared up at the slowly falling snowflakes with a peaceful sense of detachment.

It was times like these, when her day had gone completely to hell and she was left wondering at how everything had gone downhill so _fast_, that she privately wished that she had just kept Toby and had stayed with Jareth in the Labyrinth.

At least the Labyrinth felt safe. Nothing in her world felt safe anymore.

The snow crunched softly from somewhere just over her head, the tread of the person coming old and familiar.

"The goblins tell me that you threw them out of your house." Jareth informed with an amused smile as he came to a stop just over her head.

Sarah refused to move from her place on the snow covered ground, and merely stared up at him blandly. "They broke seven of my plates, four of my bowls, utterly destroyed my good wine glasses, and that doesn't even begin to touch on what they did to my refrigerator and its contents. They're fortune that _all_ I did was chuck them out the back door."

Jareth hummed thoughtfully at the news, the smile never leaving his face. "Mind if I take the spot next to you?"

His Champion gave a half-hearted shrug. "Have at it."

The Goblin King's face disappeared from her view and within moments the fae was lying beside her, one gloved hand easily capturing one of hers as he watched the snow fall with her.

"I've always rather liked the holiday season," he confessed, "Especially the newer Yule songs that have come out in recent centuries."

"Is that so?" Sarah asked, humoring him.

"Quite so," He agreed. "Have they played the one about the child that saw their mother kissing St. Nicholas?"

Sarah snorted indelicately, her tone less than enthusiastic. "More than once."

The Goblin King turned his head and raised a questioning eyebrow at her. "Do I sense distaste? What is there to dislike about the song? It is a charming story."

The young woman finally turned her eyes away from the falling fluff to give the supernatural being beside her a dry expression. "Yes, a wonderful song, truly, let's all sing about a woman going behind her husband's back to kiss another man while he's not present, great morals there, really."

Jareth stared at her with a kind of disbelieving fascination. "Surly you jest? Is it not common practice for the man of the house to pretend to be the toy maker out on his yearly errand? It is obvious that the man she is kissing is her husband doing just that."

Sarah flicked some snow at him in disagreement. "Let's just pretend for the moment that the man in the red suit _isn't_ the kid's father. You ever listen to the version done by the Jackson Five? The first thing that that kid says is that he's going to tell his Dad. Now tell me, what kind of idiot kid hasn't learned enough self-preservation to know that doing something like that _isn't_ going to end well for anyone? The kid is going to wake up his father, tell him what he just saw, and if Santa is lucky he'll just leave the house with a black eye. If he's not lucky, Daddy and Santa are going to have an altercation, the cops are going to be called, and both males will be spending Christmas Eve in jail. And that far too honest kid that couldn't keep his big mouth shut? He'll get a twenty pound bag of coal for Christmas for ruining Santa's fun."

The fae blinked in dumbstruck surprise. "You have thought of this _far_ too thoroughly, Precious."

His Champion shrugged. "They played that song like crazy the year my parents got divorced. It's not my favorite song."

"I see," he commented thoughtfully, "then perhaps you would not object to the song giving its regard to the Yule Tree?"

"O Christmas Tree?" She inquired in disbelief. "That is the dumbest song I ever heard."

The Goblin King huffed wryly. "My you are difficult to please today, and what, pray tell, is wrong with _this_ song?"

"You mean besides the fact that we're singing about a _tree_?" She returned dryly.

"Yes." Jareth prompted her simply, waiting.

Sarah shrugged, "It just seems in poor taste to sing thanks to the poor evergreen that you chopped down to die a slow death in your house as a Christmas decoration."

The fae snorted in amusement. "Fair enough," he conceded. "In that case, how about the one where the toy maker is coming to the town and the children are warned to behave?"

"You mean the one where Santa Claus is some kind of stalker that watches your children from the shadows as they play and sleep to decide whether or not he should sneak into your home in the dead of night to give them gifts? Yeah, let St. Nick explain _that one_ to the judge after the home security guys Taser his butt for breaking and entering."

Jareth was silent for several moments, his lips twitching upwards as he struggled not to laugh. "I suppose the one where the grandmother suffered the misfortune of being run over by a reindeer simply goes without saying."

"Grandma is obviously drunk, and instead of a much younger and responsible relative getting up to go with her since she is not in the right state of mind to be reasonable, they let her walk home in the snow and cold to get her medication that may or may not mix well with alcohol. Oh yeah, great family there. Besides, I don't think Santa had anything to do with that "misfortune" as you call it. It sounds an awful lot like grandpa may have been trying to set the fat man up to me."

The Goblin King cocked his head slightly to one side, intrigued. "And how did you come about to that conclusion?"

"_Now we're all so proud of grandpa, he's been taking this so well. See him in there watching football, drinking root beer and playing cards with Cousin Mel._" She sang meaningfully. "Obviously he is the very epitome of grieving husband; I bet he even won a few hands of poker in her honor."

The fae pointedly turned his gaze back up to the falling snow, trying to hide his struggle for composure.

"What then of the song about the two lovers," he asked with an almost mechanical evenness to his voice. "Where the one wish's the other to stay, but the woman is concerned for her reputation."

"You mean the story of our life?" Sarah asked frankly.

And Jareth promptly lost his battle and _laughed_, great heaving peals of mirth that had him literally gasping for breath as he turned onto his side and tightly clutched his Champion's hand.

The sight had Sarah finally showing her first real smile for the day.

"I'm glad my observations could amuse you, Goblin King." She stated easily. "Would you like to hear my thoughts on Valentine's Day next? I promise it will be twice as scathing."

Jareth quickly waved a gloved hand between them as if to ward off her words.

"That will not be necessary." He assured her after he got his laughter back under control.

"Is that a fact?" She asked with good humor.

"Very much so," he agreed, reaching out to tuck a loose bit of hair back behind her ear. "It's good to see you smiling again. I was worried when I heard that you were so lenient with the goblins' punishment. It's unlike you to let them get away with causing such damage."

Sarah sighed, and the smile slipped from her face. "It was a bad day. I just couldn't deal with them."

"Care to share?" Jareth asked patiently.

The young woman turned her gaze back up to the falling snow, and clutched the fae's hand tightly. "Karen's sister, Melanie turned up for Christmas this year."

"And this woman would be your step-aunt, correct?" The Goblin King inquired.

Sarah nodded. "Yeah, and normally, despite the invite, she doesn't come to the family dinner. I mean, everyone else does but, according to her, her family has their own traditions that they observe. Recently, however, her relationship with her husband Reese has been… strained would be putting it politely. So this year she just kind of turned up at the front door, and she didn't come alone. Aunt Mel has these two kids…"

"I take it their behavior is reminiscent of your less than ideal teen years?" He questioned attentively.

She snorted. "Jareth, I was a pussy cat in comparison. If my Dad and Karen had just left me well enough alone during that time I would have been almost no trouble. No, these kids are like the spawn of Satan."

The fae's lips spread into an intrigued grin. "Oh, do tell."

"Benjamin is the oldest at twelve, and his sister Marisa is the younger at nine. Aunt Mel dotes on these kids as if they are suffering from a terminal disease. If they don't want to get up to get the TV remote, Mommy will go and get it for them. If they don't like what your serving for dinner, Mommy will get up from the table to get make them something else. If they want to play with your toys and you say no, they will push you down the stairs if they don't _get their way_." She hissed angrily.

The grin abruptly fell from Jareth's lips. "Who…?" He asked hesitantly.

"_Toby._" She growled dangerously. "He just turned six not too long ago, and those little brats had heard about it and decided to sneak into his room after dinner to see what he had been given. Dad had gotten him this really nice Hot Wheels Race Track with all the loops and twists, and Toby has just been so _proud_ of it, you know. He takes after Karen when it comes to minding his toys, and…" Sarah took in a sharp breath, as if she were trying to stop herself from either screaming or crying. "He's been real cautious about letting people play with it, even himself. He always checks to make sure that the track is still set up properly, and that there's nothing for the little cars to get caught up on before he sets them up. Toby caught them in his room poking at it and told them he didn't want them to play with it until he had double checked the track. They didn't want to listen to him."

"Did he try to get his mother's attention?" The Goblin King asked gently.

Sarah nodded jerkily. "You know Toby, he's a good kid. When things weren't going right he immediately went to get his mother to mediate, but they didn't want Karen involved. I was in the living room talking with Karen's father and heard him come running out of his room and turned to see what was wrong. Toby had just reached the top of the stairs when Ben had come up behind him and shoved him. It was _terrible_ Jareth. I heard him scream, and I ran for the stairs…"

She closed her eyes and the fae finally saw tears as she turned back onto her side and reached out for him. The Goblin King quickly took her into his arms, and held her as she shuddered silently.

"Is Toby…?" He asked, hesitating once again.

"He has a broken wrist and two cracked ribs," She answered him softly, "but I caught him before his head and neck could hit the bottom steps. The EMTs told me that I probably saved his life, but I can't help but think that I should have followed him up to his room, that I should have kept a closer eye on him, especially once I saw how spoiled his cousins were."

"There was no way you could have predicted how cruel those children would be. Neither you nor your family was in the wrong to believe they were safe within their own home." He assured her gently. "What you need to concentrate on is that you were there when you needed to be. Nothing else matters."

"Not according to Aunt Mel." Sarah disagreed lowly. "That woman brought her kids up to the hospital to "apologize" to Toby, and when Karen told her that he was sedated, and that he wouldn't be able to take visitors, she insisted that her two little demons should be allowed to sit with him until he woke. I have to give her credit though; Karen held her ground and didn't budge, even when her sister made a stink about her kids sitting with the other sick people in the waiting room, too bad that she couldn't let things end there."

"What do you mean," Jareth inquired with a frown.

"About an hour after they got Toby settled into a private room the nurses called my parents away to deal with the insurance and paper work that needed to be done, and wouldn't you know it, here comes Aunt Mel just after there out of sight to try and sneak her little monsters into the room."

"I take it you did not permit her entrance." The fae stated evenly.

"I told her that she and her kids would be coming into that room over my dead body, and that if she was smart, she would go home until Karen called her to make arrangements." Sarah stated evenly before huffing dryly. "Then she went and called the hospital security on me, and told them that I had threatened her and her children."

"I must admit." The Goblin King stated with a look of incredulity. "That is one determined woman."

"Don't I know it," Sarah sighed. "Anyway, I managed to convince the security that they didn't know the whole story, and that they would be putting Toby in danger if they let her or her kids into the room. Jeffery, the senior guard for that floor, promised that he would not let anyone but Dad or Karen into the room if I would go with his partner and leave the hospital. There wasn't anything else I could really do, so I left a message with the nurses to tell my parents where I had gone, and came home."

"So, you were able to do _nothing_?" Jareth asked in skepticism. "Nothing at _all_?"

"Well…" Sarah hedged. "Nearest and Further were following me around today so as soon as I was out of out of sight I might have asked them to go look after Toby for me."

Jareth hummed knowingly at the admission and eyed his Champion shrewdly. "I see you were feeling a bit vengeful."

Sarah grinned, the expression all teeth.

Nearest and Further were two unusually bright goblins that held a curious fondness for the Williams children; young Tobias in particular, being a favorite playmate.

"Have you tried calling the hospital once you returned home?" Jareth asked.

Sarah shook her head. "Nope, until my parents fix the situation I've been black listed. No way around it."

The fae sighed, and fell silent.

Truthfully there wasn't much he could do to rectify the situation either. He was very limited in how much he could interfere with mortal affairs unless asked or invited, and Sarah had already set Nearest and Further to the more prominent task of minding her younger sibling in her absence.

The only thing left to any of them at this point was just to wait and see where fate took them.

"You know what's sad." Sarah commented after several minutes of quiet. "I don't think I've had a completely happy Christmas since I was a little kid. If it wasn't my parents arguing about _something_, it was later the _joys_ of the divorce itself. Once Mom was gone, it was the awkward silences that followed my Dad and I, those looks of pity and sadness, and the whispered remarks that it must be difficult for my father that I looked so much like my mother. Then Karen and Toby came so quickly, and the holidays became something hectic and chaotic and… sometimes… Sometimes I think Scrooge had it right the first time. It's just best to view Christmas as another day, no worrying, no wondering if you're putting on the right appearances for whoever you're hosting; just another peaceful winter day."

The young woman abruptly shook her head as if she was trying to dislodge the morbid thoughts.

"I know it sounds stupid, it just kind of feels like my bad luck is starting to rub off on Toby." She stated frankly. "I never wanted him to know his family the way I knew mine, to have to wonder who was actually on his side, and who was just humoring him."

"One bad scion of the family does not necessarily mean Toby will walk through the same hardships you did." Jareth soothed. "For one thing, he has a determined and stubborn older sister to look out for him that is already wise to the harsher realities of life. And for another, that same sister has… friends in unique places."

Sarah could help herself and laughed.

"There," The fae sighed happily. "You're smiling again. That's much better. Now, I think I may have a solution to one of your problems."

"Hmm?" Sarah asked curiously.

"You said that _you_ could not call the hospital, but _I _have received no such ban." Jareth informed her with a grin.

His Champion's eyes widened. "That's right… and if you call for Karen they won't think twice about it. You'll just be another friend or family member calling to get an update on the situation."

The fae chuckled as Sarah all but threw herself to her feet, and quickly began to pull him up. "Come on Goblin King, we have phone call to make."

A bit of stumbling and a few short minutes later Jareth was following the young woman into her kitchen as she made a bee line to her phone. The fae paused in the doorway to both marvel and wince and the mess his goblin had made of the room. It appeared as if one of the little hellions had managed to get the refrigerator open and had decided to start a food fight, and then when their edible ammunition ran low they went after Sarah's dishes.

Carefully making his way across the room to the young woman's side Jareth reached out to take the phone from the wall, and started as it rang.

Feeling rather mischievous himself, he quickly picked up and put the phone to his ear before Sarah could protest. "Williams Residence." He answered.

He paused, grin widening into something vaguely predatory as he watched Sarah's face grow anxious.

"Why Hello, Mrs. Williams', Sarah was just about to have me call the hospital for her." He greeted the woman.

His Champion gave an odd little squeak, and swiftly made a grab for the phone.

Easily side stepping her, the fae continued to speak. "Me? Oh, I'm a friend of Sarah's." A pause. "Ah, well, I suppose you _could_ say that I'm a bit more than a friend."

Sarah growled and tried to dart in behind him, but Jareth swiftly danced around her, bring the phone's cord up and over her head as she passed.

"Oh, we've known each other for a quite a few years now." He chatted pleasantly. "Yes, I used to take classes down at the local college and would spend my lunches in the park." Another pause and Jareth quickly caught and twirled Sarah away from him as she made to tackle him. "Why yes, as a matter of fact, I _was_ pulled into line reading with her on more than one occasion." He agreed, listening. "Oh, I would have to say that I especially enjoyed reading Shakespeare with her. She has an absolutely wonderful insight into the characters." Another pause, and another attempt, quickly foiled. "My name is Jareth and-" This time the Goblin King couldn't avoid her, and Sarah finally succeeded in wresting the phone from his grip.

"Hello? Karen?" Sarah asked and was promptly bombarded with questions. "Yes… no… no… well, I guess… no… yes… He's awake now…? …Alright, I'll bring him with me… okay… Goodbye, Karen."

"Well?" Jareth asked.

Sarah opened her mouth and then closed it several times before she turned and stared at the fae beside her, a vague look of contemplation painted across her features.

"Karen called Uncle Reese to come and get Aunt Mel and her kids, and then put the woman in her place before informing the security that they threw out the wrong person, so it's safe for me to come back now." She informed him evenly. "Toby woke up about twenty minutes ago and has been asking for me, and I have been ordered in no uncertain terms to ensure that you come to the hospital to meet Karen and Dad. Apparently, it would be an absolutely _wonderful_ Christmas present for her." The look she shot the Goblin King at that comment was pure venom. "I could almost _hear_ her naming her future grandchildren from here, _Jareth_, so you better have something nice and from this era to put on." She snarled.

Jareth grinned widely at her, unrepentant. "I told you months ago that if you presented me with the opportunity that would make every effort to meet your family. It's hardly my fault that your step-mother is just as eager as I in this matter."

Sarah snorted, and swiftly turned and headed toward the master bedroom, the fae a step behind her.

"Eager doesn't even begin to cover it. You do realize that we're going to have to renew our wedding vows at our coming anniversary, don't you?" She inquired as she opened her bedroom door and stepped into the Goblin King's chambers, heading straight for his closet at the far end of the room.

Jareth froze at the threshold of the two worlds. "_Another_ wedding? Did we not just have one two years ago shortly after your eighteenth birthday?"

"We did," The young woman agreed pleasantly, "and because we didn't want to deal with the fuss of having to explain to my parents why I had been engaged at fifteen we had it in the Labyrinth, where we did _not_ invite our families. And since Karen has been trying to get me into a relationship since we first met, you can just imagine how much she is going to try to fast track us into exchanging vows. Congratulations, my fine fairy friend, you just got us signed up for wedding number two in just as many years."

The fae stared at her almost sulkily. "Could we not just have another long engagement? The first worked out well for the two of us."

Sarah glanced at something in the closet before eyeing Jareth's tall form and smiling. "You can try, but just keep in mind that I have never seen a more determined person than Karen when she wants something."

The Goblin King gave an odd, resigned sigh as finally stepped into the castle and kicked the ornate door into Sarah's world shut. "The things I do for you." He quipped.

His Champion only grinned. "And I for you, now go and get dressed, Goblin King, we have a long evening ahead of us."

And as Jareth took the clothes from her outstretched hand and left to change Sarah couldn't help but think that maybe, in a roundabout way, the fae's last comment was right.

In all her past Christmases she had never had someone who was there strictly for her, not like Jareth was for her now, and not like he would be for all her coming Christmases.

Maybe… maybe Scrooge _didn't_ have it right in the beginning.

Maybe, like her, he finally got it right in the end, by finding that one person that wouldn't see him as anything else but another soul to be cherished.

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AN: Done for BewilderedFemales's Winter Challenge, nevermind that I can't recall the exact parameters for the Challenge and that I think it fits it only in the most loosest of terms. XD To anyone else who reads this and wants to know where this came from, I feel you should know that I have no idea. Does this even count as a one-shot, or is it more of a long winded drabble? -Shi


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